That was my mother, the sweetest person on the planet. She made everyone feel welcome and never held a grudge. Not even with the woman who my father never got over.
“We have pies to bake and food to prepare for tomorrow,” my mother said, stepping away from Darcy. “Who wants to do what?”
The tension didn’t disappear, but it did lessen as we all got to work. Aunt Caity never came back, and I wondered if I should go look for her. When I caught my mother’s eye, she shook her head, telling me to leave it alone. I wondered if she knew more than she had told me.
We’d been in the kitchen for hours, my mother talking to Darcy as if she was an old friend. Once again, I was reminded how wonderful my mother was. Grace didn’t talk to Darcy, and I decided to pull her aside later and find out what the story was.
I’d seen her with my father at the clubhouse in Rosewood, and she clearly loved him. But Darcy she ignored.
“Grace, honey, when are you due?” my mother asked.
“May,” she said quietly, and I saw Colleen reach over and squeeze her hand. I knew it was still hard for her to talk about the baby. She was excited to be a mother, and even happier the baby was King’s but the trauma surrounding her pregnancy was hard to deal with.
“Just before Morgan,” my mother said with a smile.
“Morgan,” Beck said. “What are your plans for after the baby comes? Will you stay here in Little Rock? Or go back to Rosewood?”
“Um,” I looked at Freyja, who only smiled. “My plan is to go back to Rosewood.”
The words felt hollow. Like I didn’t mean them. I looked around at the women and expected judgment, or disappointment that I wasn’t staying with Jude. All I saw was understanding. Acceptance.
Grace reached over and squeezed my hand the same way Colleen had done for her. And I squeezed it back.
“Maybe I’ll visit Nebraska.”
“We would love that,” Grace said.
“Freyja, why are you even here?” Beck asked. “Are you planning on having the baby here?” she added with a snicker.
“Nope, Lucille said it was fine.”
I waited for the questions and snickers, but none came.
“Is Lucille your doctor?” Darcy asked.
“No, Lucille Ball.”
Darcy’s head snapped up, and she looked at Freyja, who I just realized was her sister-in-law.
“The actress?” Darcy asked.
“Duncan didn’t tell you?”
“No,” she said, shaking her head lightly. I caught the pain as she quickly blinked it away.
“She’s my spirit guide.”
Darcy smiled. “I bet Duncan loves that.” She had a guilty look when she said, “I didn’t mean that the way it sounded.”
Grace snorted next to me, and I tapped her ankle lightly with my foot.
“It’s just that Duncan never believed the Irish stories about leprechauns, fairies, and banshees. He was always too literal.”
“He doesn’t believe in Lucille either, but he believes in me, or so he says.”
“Anyone seeing the two of you together would know that man is head over heels for you,” Maureen said. “I’m so happy you found each other.”
“Me too. He’s everything,” Freyja said with a dreamy look on her face.